Finding the "dominant - recessive genes" of the Malaysian National Team

ConductorAkram Mahinan

Central midfielder number 12 Akram Mahinan has a style of play quite similar to Ngo Hoang Thinh, a player who is rumored to return to play for SLNA. Coach Tan Cheng Hoe prefers a style of play with 2 central midfielders, one playing the role of "sweeper" like Syamer bin Kutty Abba (14), the otherAkram Mahinanwill do the construction work.

Midfielder Akram Mahinan (12) will become Quang Hai's opponent. Photo: Internet

Thailand midfielder Sanrawat may be excellent everywhere, but when facing the duo Akram Mahinan - Syamer Kutty Abba, this midfielder was completely neutralized. While Syamer was especially good at sweeping and recovering the ball, Mahinan was excellent at passing and controlling the game.

Witnessing the impressive performance of the player born in 1993, Malaysian football fans were able to somewhat forget the absence of veteran Safiq Rahim in this tournament.

Akram Mahinan is one of the few Malaysian players to have played all the matches of the 2018 AFF Cup, and was one of the best players in the two semi-final matches against Thailand. "I didn't play really well in the group stage match in Hanoi," Akram admitted. "Hopefully I will be more effective in the next match in Bukit Jalil."

In Malaysia's pressing style, the 25-year-old midfielder will be Quang Hai's opponent. It is worth mentioning that both Akram and Quang Hai have received a yellow card and it is very likely that after the match at Bukit Jalil Stadium, they will not be present at My Dinh in the second leg, if they do not "take care".

small barrel gun

If they can seize the opportunity and create breakthroughs, the defense will keep a clean sheet when facing the Malaysians. The return match in Bangkok was a typical example, the home team Thailand were "suffocated" by the impressive pressing style and often made mistakes, even when they had more players.

The Malaysian team’s style of play under coach Tan Cheng Hoe resembles that of a second-tier European team. The 0-2 loss at My Dinh was due to Tan’s arrangement of a pressing squad but lacking a breakthrough player in attack. It felt like he had fallen into the “tiger-leaving-the-mountain” trap of his Korean counterpart.

The Vietnam national football team is full of opportunities to lift the Gold Cup. Photo: Trung Kien

Before the final, after 6 matches, Malaysia had 9 goals. But Mr. Tan only had 3 players score, including Norshahrul Idlan Talaha (5 goals), captain Zaquan Adha Radzak (3) and right-back Syahmi Safari (1) - who was suspended for the first leg against Vietnam. That explains why despite pressing the field and holding the ball a lot, Malaysia scored few goals, this cannon only had "two barrels".

In a 4-4-2 formation, the two strikers Norshahrul Talaha and Zaquan Adha often swapped roles, confusing the opposition defence. Thailand paid the price when the defence failed to control the pair, allowing them too much space. Norshahrul's equaliser in Bangkok came when he made a smart run, escaping a seven-man defence.

Coach Tan Cheng Hoe's familiar tactic is to let Talaha drop low, while the two wingers Safawi and Sumareh proactively move up, transforming into a 4-3-3 formation. The naturalized player of Gambian origin, Sumareh, on the right wing, is strong in strength and speed, and unexpectedly has technical ball handling moves that rush straight into the 16.5m box with high variability.

Although he has not scored yet, this number 13 has actively contributed to harassing and destroying the opponent's strength. On Bukit Jalil field, Sumareh will play the role of restraining Doan Van Hau from participating in supporting the attack.

The host Malaysia will press the opponent until they are breathless and then finish the match. Meanwhile, Mr. Park Hang-seo is good at using a defensive style of play, giving the opponent the advantage and suddenly scoring goals with sharp attacks. The use of tactics by the two coaches is like water and fire, so the final of the AFF Cup 2018 becomes more worth watching!